The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of The Incredible Hulk

I am an aspiring novelist with a love for movies and anything Marvel. Writing is my passion, and movies are my obsession.

Like all movies, The Incredible Hulk has high points and low points. This movie was not my favorite of the Marvel films, but the introduction to the Hulk was needed.

In my review of this smashing movie, I'm going to give my opinion of the characters and the storyline. At the end, I will finish with where this movie leads us.

Storyline

The Hulk yells across at Abomination

First, may I say, that I did not like the choppy rhythm of this movie's storyline. There were some points that were just difficult to follow.

However, though it was not my favorite, it was still a good movie.

I appreciated the opening sequence of the movie. This is where we are given the back story without having to waste a lot of extra time with how Banner got to be the way he is.

The rushed feeling of the movie came during the fighting scenes. Sometimes, the way the fighting scenes were set up had me wondering what in the world was going on.

Stark Sonic Cannon

The Sonic Cannon is not explained. We are just shown it and how it worked against Hulk. Now, if you are the detail noticing type, you might have noticed them in the opening sequence. An approved Stark weapon, but not much introduction or explanation for it. They just pop up and get destroyed.

What was the cause of them getting destroyed? Here is another thing I wasn't so sure about. The love story between Bruce and Betty.

It came across as cheesy. We even have the cheesy reuniting in the rain scene. Their relationship was not fully developed. Not only that, but it has been completely thrown out the window in the newer movies. In my opinion, it could have been done a little better.

The storyline of this movie just didn't do it for me. It left me feeling like the story was unfinished. Sometimes, you want that in a movie. However, the way it was done in this movie made the Hulk and Banner feel incomplete as I saw them again in The Avengers.

The Characters

One of my favorite Stan Lee cameos.

Whereas I had a few problems with the overall storyline of the movie, I did appreciate the actual characters on their own.

Bruce Banner/Hulk

Edward Norton as Bruce Banner in The Incredible Hulk.

Edward Norton's take on Bruce Banner and the Hulk was a good one. He made a believable Banner. However, I did not like his Banner as much as I have liked Mark Ruffalo's take. We got to see a bit more of Banner's personality in Ruffalo's character.

However, I did very much enjoy Norton's portrayal of the other guy. We got to see a little bit into the Hulk's mind. Seeing what characters are thinking, seeing more of their development, is something I love experiencing in movies.

Betty Ross

Liv Tyler in The Incredible Hulk

No, I didn't like her as the love interest. Liv Tyler is a great actress. I especially loved her in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but as I said before, the love story in this movie just didn't seem quite right.

Betty talking to the Hulk.

However, I loved how we did get to see that she did have influence over the Hulk, and getting the Hulk to think about what he was doing. She helped bring out the character development of the Hulk. So, in this way, she was a very crucial point in the Hulk's future.

Emil Blonksy/Abomination

Hulk and Blonksy facing off.

Blonksy was the minion turned villain. If Tim Roth wanted to be creepy, he definitely pulled that off. Once he was injected with the serum that made him almost like Captain America, he turned more into Red Skull than anything. The stuff made him, well....

Abomination.

Crazy. And very creepy.

I think Blonksy as a character was good, but like everything else in the movie, his storyline was just a bit rushed.

General Thunderbolt Ross

William Hurt as Thunderbolt Ross.

William Hurt as Thunderbolt Ross made for an interesting character. He was the man with a vendetta for Bruce Banner.

Why?

Father and daughter watching the Hulk.

Because like any father, he wanted to keep his daughter safe. After what we see happen in the lab, we can understand the general's worry. Even if he does take it to the extreme.

I think that Hurt portrayed the character well. He came across as what I believe he wanted to be. Ross was the demanding general who wanted the best for his daughter.

Beyond

So where does this movie take us? What did this movie add to the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

Well, it introduces the Hulk. He is now in the lineup for the Avengers. We don't see or hear of him much before the Avengers, but that's what this movie was for.

The last scene in The Incredible Hulk.

It also introduced the fact that Tony Stark and Thunderbolt Ross are working together. What does this mean? Nothing has been shown yet, but I have a feeling we will find out soon.

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